Jogging Tips | Jogging | Running

There is some controversy as to whether or not running or walking is the better exercise. Each form of exercise has its own pros and cons. If you are wondering whether or not you should be running and exercising, you may want to consider the positive and negative aspects of each before you choose one.

Consider Doing Both

Keep in mind that a lot of people feel as if doing a workout that is a combination of both is ideal. Walking provides excellent cross training for running and vice versa. And that way you can reap the benefits of both. If the workout includes alternating bursts of running and walking you can get the best of both worlds.

Risk of Injury

It is important to note that it seems that runners have a higher risk of injury than walkers. Running is a higher impact sport than walking is. If you have joint problems or are struggling with constant injuries, walking is the better choice. If you walk at a fast pace, you will still burn adequate calories.

Weight Loss Considerations

At first glance, it may seem as if running can help you lose weight. This is partially true. Runners tend to burn more calories because they go faster. However, if a walker is focused on going at a fast clip, they could also burn enough calories to lose weight. With walking, it is easier to get complacent.

Examining a Duke Study

There was a study done at Duke University that attempted to analyze which is better for weight loss, running or walking. The end result of the study was that the two were nearly identical. The key is that the walkers need to maintain a fast pace and not reduce their stride to a stroll. However, runners and joggers experienced better protection against heart disease.

Running Burns More Calories

You can’t escape the fact that running burns more calories. The current lore is that walking a mile and running a mile burns approximately the same amount of calories. However, runners will complete that mile a lot quicker than the average walker. So, thirty minutes of running will burn a lot more calories than thirty minutes of walking. Despite the results that the Duke study indicates, running should help you lose weight quicker.

Health Benefits of Exercise

But no matter which activity you ultimately choose, running or walking, the important thing to remember is that leading an active life is important to building an overall state of health. The key to staying healthy is to keep moving.

Americas Athletes Blogging

Although running to lose weight is not for everyone, but if you are capable of running, then you will find tremendous benefits. To get the most out of your running exercise, it is important that you follow a few, simple guidelines.

After all, you want each running outing to be effective, but also enjoyable. The great thing about using running to lose weight is that you can do it wherever you go. Therefore, if you travel, you can still find a place to run. If it were raining, an indoor treadmill would be the ideal solution.

Running to lose weight has been a favorite option for millions of people. Something about getting outdoors in the fresh air is invigorating, boosting a person’s level of energy and clearing the mind. While you could use a number of exercises to drop pounds, running to lose weight works exceptionally well, while building up lean muscle and improving the heart and lungs.

As mentioned, if you are going to use running to lose weight, you want to do it the right way. The information below will help you with the various decisions needing to be made.

Proper Running Attire

While running to lose weight should be fun, if you were not wearing the right attire or shoes, you will find the experience a miserable one. The last thing you want to do is come home with a foot full of blisters or sick from not having enough layers on.

It is important to wear clothing that provides ventilation, but also clothing that is not too hot or too cool. Additionally, we strongly recommend that you invest in two to three pairs of high quality running shoes. Then, alternate the shoes each time you go out running to lose weight. This will make your feet more comfortable while reducing the risk of chin splints.

Carbohydrates and Protein

Before you go out running to lose weight, it is important to fuel the body. For this, you should eat a little bit of carbohydrates about 30 to 45 minutes ahead of time. A great option would be a cup of cooked pasta, topped with a little bit of protein in the form of chicken or cheese.

Safety

Of course, whether you plan to go running to lose weight during the day or nighttime hours, you always want to put safety first. Sure, listening to an MP3 player or iPod makes the time go faster but it also blocks out your hearing.

Unfortunately, many people have been attacked while running and listening to music, having been snuck up on from behind. Instead, stay in populated areas, use well-lit roads, parks, or paths, avoid the headphones, and if possible, run with a friend or dog.

Remember, in addition to running to lose weight, you can also incorporate various forms of exercise, breaking up the routine to make it more interesting. For example, you might start running to lose weight on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and then bike, swim, or hike on Tuesday and Thursday.

In addition, for the greatest success, it is imperative that you start on a healthy diet, trying to keep calorie intake between 1,200 and 1,500 daily. By choosing the right foods, especially those high in fiber that will make you feel full, you will actually eat more but with fewer calories

By using running to lose weight, you will easily burn 200 to 300 calories every day. When you add that up over the course of a week, you have lost one to two pounds, which is considered a healthy weight loss goal. Keep in mind that a pound is equivalent to 3,500 calories. Therefore, if you can use running to lose weight along with other exercise options and a diet of fewer calories, you can be certain the pounds will begin to fade.

In addition to enjoying the benefits to the body by running to lose weight, you will also enjoy benefits for the mind. Running is an excellent way to de-stress and relax. Since stress has also been shown to have a direct link to weight gain, by reducing stress, you have just found yet another benefit of this type of exercise.

Americas Blog Community

To me I can’t really see any benefits of jogging outside. It is cold, the pavements are all uneven, I’d be jogging on my own, so I would not feel particularly safe. I am just wondering. Hope you all had a lovely Christmas too. Thank you very much.

Blog Community

When I exercise, I know the importance of doing cardio exercise as well as working out my muscles, but I hate running. I know its good for me because its an intese cardio workout as opposed to the elliptical or just walking. Only thing is, I haven’t ran in years, so I am out of shape and get tired easily. I quit easily when it comes to running. What’s the best way to get used to running and ease into it? I can barely even run on the treadmill for two minutes without getting tired.

Americas Athletes Blogging

I’m looking to do more exercise at home and lose some weight. I would like to try out a Kathy Smith/Denise Austin/Tae Bo DVD, but I’m worried that if it involved lots of jumping and running around, it will irritate my neighbors. Any recommendations???? Thanks in advance!

Americas Athletes Blog Community

Sport is for professionals. This idea applies only in the case of performance sports. The native qualities required for professional sportsmen (speed, skills, specific height, etc.) can only be developed, they can’t be formed by training. As long as the aim of a regular person is not performance, almost all sports can be practiced for keeping the body in a good shape. It’s all about dosing the training you chose, so that the benefits are bigger than wear and tear. Even the sports considered tough can be practiced in a ’soft’ way (tae-bo, mini-triathlon, jogging, etc.).
Training is tiring. This idea is true as long as it refers to consuming all your energy (muscular and hepatic glycogen), but it doesn’t mean that training gets you into that state of exhaustion which would slow down the process of recovery of the body. Even in performance sports, the purpose is to have rather effective than exhausting training, so that the body can get the stimulation necessary to qualitative progress from one training to the next.

Even more than in other sports, in fitness the sportsman is spared overexerting. However, the training must not become ineffective. People can come to the gym tired after a work day and leave relaxed (physically and psychologically) and not more tired. This is extremely useful for people with sedentary jobs, but also for those who make physical effort at work. They could use the training by choosing a type of effort meant to compensate the one involved in their job.

Training takes too long. Again, this idea is true if applied to performance, which can only be obtained by working a lot. But also in this case short and very intense training or training for relaxation and recovery are often performed. In fitness, you can get to 20-minute training, working only super-series of fast exercises, which could involve, directly or indirectly, all the muscles. Anyway, regular training shouldn’t take longer than an hour and a half. Otherwise, the body will get into the catabolic faze, when the cortisone secretions ‘cannibalize’ the muscles.
Any type of exercise is good for solving your problems. What’s true in this refers to some particular cases like excess of adipose tissue. This tissue can be ‘melted’ by any kind of aerobic exercise (running, cycling, swimming) if this is continued long enough. Even in these cases it was clear that some exercises are more effective than others. There are situations when only a combination of exercises with a certain amount of each, can provide you with the results you expect. More than that, repeating the same exercise all the time can have as a consequence not only losing balance in the antagonist muscles and in the joints involved in training, but also stopping progress or even regressing.
You’re older? No more exercises! This is true only if we refer to extremely demanding efforts (really heavy weights, fast running, jumping, etc.). There are lots of exercises adapted to different ages. Their purpose is to keep and improve health and also to improve physical shape. The development of movement parameters for older people refers especially to muscular and cardio-vascular resistance as well as mobility of the joints. Because the final purpose of training is not preparing for a competition, the exercises can be organized gradually according to their difficulty, eliminating the risk of accidents. Because it’s based on perseverance, fitness can be adapted without problems for older people and even for people suffering from different affections specific to old age.

Americas Athletes Blog Community

This should come as no shock to anyone that looks around the United States. Our scales are tipping in a very unfavorable direction. America is incredibly obese. Obesity is associated with many serious medical conditions. The good news is that for most people obesity is a very treatable and manageable chronic condition. The best thing you can do for yourself is to loose weight, get and keep your weight under control and stay in shape.

Did you know that just a drop of 5-15% of total body weight will lower your chances of developing heart disease or having a stroke. Weight loss can lower your blood pressure, your cholesterol levels and inflammation throughout your body. If having better health is not motivation enough consider the fact that obesity cost the United States over $122 billion a year. That cost includes preventive, diagnostics and treatment for obesity, not to mention the cost of treating the medical conditions caused by obesity. So it is time to get in shape. Here are some of the best exercises that you can do to get in shape.

The first exercise is something that everyone does every day, but not in the correct way to be beneficial for weight loss. Can you guess what it is? Walking, the simplest exercise in the world, which will not only will burn a good proportion of the stored fat and will burn a large amount of calories if you walk at a brisk pace for a long period of time. Walking is a wonderful exercise for a person of any age that wants to loose weight.

Aerobic is the second best exercise to loose weight and is very popular. Aerobics is very effective at burning a large amount of energy in a single session. The downside to aerobic is that if you are already overweight an aerobics class may be to intense at first for proper fat burning. A recommendation to start aerobics then is to start at home with a video tape. This will allow you to get more comfortable with the aerobic exercises so that you can join a class and really feel the fun of working out with others.

The third exercise to consider is running. If you can do it, a seven minute mile will burn about 10 calories a minute. You need to know that you do not have to run a seven minute mile in order to loose weight. You just need to run at a pace that is comfortable for you, you should be moving at a pace that you are able to carry on a conversation with out much difficulty. You need to be consistent and run everyday and as you do you will notice that it becomes easier and you will be able to increase your pace and the weight really will fall off.

These are the top three exercises that anyone can start at any age and build up their level of intensity to increase their weight loss. You can start today, make up your mind and get moving. It is really that simple, you just need to get moving and stick with it!

Blog Community

Running is one of the most popular exercise programs available. And it can be good for just about anybody. Running, as a way of life, can be enjoyable and a source of good health. If you are wondering how running can contribute to your lifestyle, well, there is just not enough space to list all the benefits. But here’s a few.

Strengthens Muscles And Bones

Have you heard of atrophy? Well, basically it is the wasting away or the decrease in size of particular parts or tissues in the body. Somehow, this concept applies to your muscles and bones whenever you neglect to use them. Most tissues in your body need to feel that they are needed; otherwise, when they do not get the level of demand that they require, they become weaker and they are simply wasted away.

You see, spending all your time in front of the TV or computer screen would create signals in your system that you do not have much need for some of your muscle and bone tissues. Overtime, those muscles and bones that you do not use will decrease in size and become weaker and brittle. Running, as an exercise, has been proven to put most of your muscles and bones to good use. In fact, it has also been found to stimulate the production of growth hormones that fuel the growth and development of stronger tissues in the body.

Busts Stress And Tensions

Somehow, running can help you deal with stress from your work, school, or even your home. Going for several miles allows you to have the time to contemplate on many problems and areas of your life. Running for an hour or two gives you ample time to clear your thoughts and emotions; you can even increase your speed or the intensity of your run to vent trapped anger or frustrations. This may be the reason why, statistically speaking, most runners have a positive take on their careers and life in general.

Works Against Diseases

Various studies have shown that running can help you fight off debilitating diseases such as stroke and diabetes. There are many doctors who prescribe running as a regular form of exercise for patients who wish to combat osteoporosis and hypertension. As a cardiovascular workout, running can help you build up a stronger heart and keep your arteries considerably elastic no matter how old you are. And of course, just like any exercise, it helps you fortify your immune system by flushing out disease-causing toxins.

Keeps Your Body In Shape

More often than not, people who are in a running program have a single goal in mind; and that is to shed off unwanted pounds. Indeed, this form of exercise is one of the simplest ways of attaining or maintaining a shapely body. It can help you burn a lot of calories per minute without using any fancy gadget. All you need is a good pair of running shoes and you are ready to go for miles.

So if you are overweight or you just want to get rid of the flab on your sides, you can try running as a form of cardiovascular workout. It is definitely safe and it won’t require you to spend a lot of money on equipment; the best part about running is that there are no membership fees.

Tones Your Legs

The part in which running can have the biggest impact is your legs. And why not? Running is basically moving your legs rapidly. This exercise can help you attain beautiful and well-toned legs that you would be proud to show off.

But remember, the shape of your legs is not enough to make it look attractive. Do not forget to deal with the flaws on the skin of your legs; even running can not help you with this. For pesky spider veins, you can use products like Veinuderm. For more information about eliminating spider veins and other spots on your legs, visit http://Veinuderm.com/.

Americas Athletes Blogs

Just thinking about buying a bike (mountain bike) and going on some trails for exercise instead of running them.

Will the results be the same?

Assuming I’ll have to bike a little further and longer for equal results… but that’s fine.

Americas Athletes Blogs

I have a pair of new jogging shoes, and one of them squeaks. I put talcum powder on it, as instructed by the manufacturer, but it still squeaks. Any suggestions?

Americas Athletes Blogging